Love, Death, and Other Eternal Matters
by SilvorMoon
Summary: Ryuu is the god of love and carnal desire, and as such, he moves constantly from one love affair to another, never letting himself be tied down. Io, god of wealth and prosperity, is his best friend, but dreams of being more. How can he win the heart of someone who's supposed to be free to love the whole world? And what is there to do if he can't?
1. Two Celebrations, One Realization

In general, the gods were not great givers of gifts. Oh, they were always ready enough to bestow blessings on their human followers, but among themselves, they tended to be more restrained. It was a matter of practicality. When you tallied up the number of gods there were, those of the Heavenly City and of the Underworld, the various lesser spirits and mortal attendants, it added up to a lot of people. If the gods had been in the habit of regularly exchanging gifts down throughout eternity, they would have eventually ended up with far more possessions than they could ever need or want or even enjoy. Most of the time, when a god wanted to give gifts, they gave something that could be used up, like food or perfume. It was only among very close friends or on very special occasions that they gave each other gifts that were meant to be kept.

Special occasions like the marriage of three gods. That was not a thing that had happened before, and a little celebration was in order.

There were a _lot_ of presents.

Io sat on a heap of packages, leaning against a small hill made up of many more. There were enough of them piled up in his entry hall that if he'd stood on the top of the heap, he could have reached up and touched the ceiling, even though it was a good forty feet overhead. On the carpet nearby, Akoya was happily unwrapping things. He had a lifetime's experience in being given presents, so he was comfortably in his element. As he unwrapped each present, he rattled off the name of the giver and the contents of the package, and Io dutifully noted the information down in a ledger so they could send thank-you notes later. Akoya had promised that he would take care of that part - his handwriting was, of course, as flawless as the rest of him. Ryuu had assisted for a while, had hung around a while longer being companionable, and had finally had lost interest and wandered off somewhere. That was all right. Io might not have been as savvy about romantic matters as Ryuu was, but even he understood that if the three of them were to make a go of this marriage, they were all going to occasionally want time away from each other.

 _It's still a bit hard to believe,_ Io mused. He looked fondly at his beautiful new husband, who was just now smiling at whatever was in the box he'd just opened, happy as a child with a box of new toys. _What did I do to deserve this kind of luck?_

Some mortals, considering the strange turns the world sometimes took, speculated that Fate had a sense of humor. Io had only really had a chance to talk to Fate a few times, but he'd formed the impression that Fate was a serious, earnest, rather taciturn man. He hadn't struck Io as being particularly humorous. Still, how else was he to account for the turn his own life had taken? Here he was, a lord of the underworld, who would have once said he'd be perfectly content to do without any romantic partners at all. He would have been content with his treasures and his people and his friends. How a loner like him had somehow ended up married to what were arguably the two most attractive people in the universe was a mystery he didn't dare probe too deeply.

Akoya looked up and smiled at him. "You're looking at me."

"Just thinking how lucky I am," said Io. "It almost seems too good to be true, doesn't it? I'd thought I'd used up my share of good luck when Ryuu asked me to marry him, and now you've come along as well. It's enough to make me wonder what I did to deserve it."

Akoya got up to sit next to him, slipping an arm around his waist. "I should be asking what I did to deserve the two of you." He rested his head on Io's shoulder. "You two always seemed to happy together. I couldn't imagine why you would ever need me for anything when you already had each other."

"We were happy," Io answered, "but we needed you to be complete."

He wondered about that, even as he said it. The more time went by, the more he'd decided that Ryuu had been right. Ryuu usually was right, where affairs of the heart were involved, and he'd been sure that bringing Akoya into their lives had been the right thing to do. He and Ryuu had always gotten along, but there were a lot of ways that they didn't have much in common. Akoya was the perfect person to bridge the gap, someone who shared both their interests and gave them a source of common ground. He could have been made just for them. It made Io wonder just how far back Fate had planned all this. Had he known this was how things would turn out when he'd agreed to make Akoya a god? Had he arranged the circumstances that had gotten Aurite's attention in the first place? Had he been the reason why Ryuu hadn't been able to halt the ill-fated marriage of Akoya's parents? Just how detailed had the whole plan been?

 _Probably better not to ask._

Akoya smiled. "I suppose I shouldn't question. When I think how close I came to rejecting you both... well, I feel rather foolish for putting you off for so long."

"Don't feel too bad," said Io. "It isn't as though Ryuu and I didn't have our troubles."

"Did you?" Akoya asked, blinking at him. "But you get along so well. I thought you'd always been friends."

Io smiled wryly. "That was part of the problem. When you've been friends with someone so long, you don't want to do anything that would spoil it, even when there's a chance that winning the gamble will make you happier in the long run. It's easier to settle for the small happiness you have than to reach for a greater one and risk losing it all."

"Ah. Yes, I understand that," said Akoya softly. "I understand that feeling very well." He shifted a little, the better to look Io in the eye. "So what changed?"

"It's a long story," said Io. "Are you sure you want to hear it?"

"Yes," said Akoya. "I'm married to you now, but I really don't know very much about you. I want you to tell me things."

"Well, I'm not much of a storyteller," said Io, "but if it will make you happy, I'll do my best."

"You'll do fine," Akoya said, and Io thought he might be right. Akoya didn't have complete control over works of art and literature, but his influence tended to help. If he said Io could tell a story, then Io probably could.

Io settled back in his seat, staring off into the distance as he pulled his thoughts together. Sometimes he could almost forget that there had been a time when he and Ryuu hadn't been together. Their ancient past felt like something out of a dream. Then again, sometimes it felt like only yesterday that he'd been celebrating his first marriage. Putting it all in order in his mind took some concentration.

"I can't put my finger on exactly when it all started," he said at last, "but I think I first started realizing what was happening on Ryuu's festival day, a long time ago..."

* * *

Ryuu had been late for breakfast that morning. Io sat at the long table where he and his best friend usually ate together, nibbling disinterestedly at a piece of toast and trying not to dwell on this fact. Normally, Ryuu would already be there, jump-starting the morning with his usual good humor and lively energy, and not having him around was throwing Io slightly off his stride. Even though the table in front of him was spread with every delicacy anyone might have ever wanted to have for breakfast, Io found he had very little appetite.

At last, when the dining hall was beginning to empty and Io was just beginning to contemplate getting up and going back to work, Ryuu came breezing in. The smile on his face was slightly dreamy, and as he slid into his customary seat, Io could smell the scents of perfume and human sweat on his friend's skin, overlying his customary scent of cherries and roses. Io took a deeper breath. More than one kind of perfume, he decided. His friend had obviously had a successful night.

"Enjoy yourself?" he asked Ryuu dryly.

Ryuu grinned even more widely. "Can't complain!"

He didn't offer any details, and Io didn't press him for them. Ryuu's festival day was celebrated by mortals in different ways. People who wanted to be married considered it an auspicious day for a wedding. Courting couples celebrated by presenting each other with tokens of their devotion. People who were single and wanted not to be would offer similar tokens to the people they were interested in, or attend services and make offerings at Vesta's temple so that he might bless them with better luck. Those were daylight activities. By night... by night, it was different. The temples to Vesta would host celebrations full of dancing and revelry, celebrating the more carnal aspect of their god. Ryuu considered it practically his duty to attend some of these revels, disguising himself as a mortal so that he could dance and flirt with the humans who adored him, and responded willingly to his advances. Io knew very well that the reason why Ryuu was late to breakfast was because he had been out until dawn enjoying himself among his devotees. He had probably had a very long night, moving from one party to another all the way across the continent. Io didn't really feel he could object - it wasn't his business to go prying into other people's sex lives, and anyway, this was Ryuu. It was practically his job to fool around.

Actually, something bad would probably happen if someone tried to make him stop. Kinshiro had explained it to Io once. The rule was simple: as above, so below. In more detailed terms, this meant that the behavior of the gods indirectly affected the lives of mortals. The gods had a lot of work to do, and while they did have some leeway in the matter of time, making it lengthen or compress according to their needs, they could not be in two places at once. If they were going to get everything done that needed doing, there had to be a shortcut. To solve the problem, Fate had made it so that instead of doing everything on a case-by-case basis, they worked by indirect influence. As long as Io kept hoarding and cataloguing his wealth, the world's economy was a little more stable. As long as En spent most of his free time asleep, the global population slept a little easier. And as long as Ryuu spent his time in amorous pursuits, the course of true love ran a little smoother. Trying to force Ryuu to live a life of celibacy wouldn't just make him unhappy, it would make the whole world a little less happy.

And none of that made Io any more comfortable knowing what Ryuu had been doing all night. Fortunately, Ryuu was gentleman enough not to try to dish out all the intimate details. Instead, he talked about things he knew Io could appreciate: the music, the extravagant decorations, the food, the funny things some of the other attendees had done. By the time Ryuu had finished his own breakfast, Io had almost forgotten what he'd wanted to be annoyed about.

Just about the time the two of them were finishing breakfast, En wandered in. He plopped into a seat across from the two of them, without apparently noticing that the two of them were there. Blindly, he fumbled a hand across the table until it came in contact with a pot of coffee, and he poured himself a large mug. A plate of assorted pastries, familiar with En's habits, politely relocated itself in front of him, and he began working his way steadily through them with an attitude that suggested he was making sugar stand in as a substitute for sleep.

"Good morning," said Io. "You're up early." Since it was only about two hours until lunchtime, this would have been a ludicrous thing to say to anyone who wasn't En.

"Mmph," said En, through a mouthful of chocolate-covered doughnut. He took a gulp of coffee and tried again. "I woke up."

Ryuu regarded him curiously, head cocked to the side. "What for?"

En shrugged. "Something woke me."

"En, you could sleep through a brass band practicing in your bedroom," said Ryuu. "I have personally seen you sleep through an earthquake. What could have woken you up if you didn't want to wake?"

"Stuff," said En. He looked thoughtful, apparently debating whether or not he wanted to make the effort of a more complete answer. After a few seconds, he added, "There's something in the air today."

Io and Ryuu exchanged looks. En was best known as the god of sleep and dreams, but he was sometimes also known as the god of prophecy. He alone among the gods had the power to grant his followers visions of the future, delivered through the dreams he sent. If he couldn't sleep because there was "something in the air"...

"What kind of thing?" Io asked.

En shrugged. "I dunno. The world just feels restless today. I think something is going to happen."

"Something bad?" Ryuu asked. Io thought he saw a flash of guilt cross his friend's features, as if he were worried that he'd been out enjoying himself all night when something serious was brewing.

En shook his head. "I don't think so. Just something different. Somebody's about to shake up the status quo." Unexpectedly, he laughed. "Aurite will love that."

Ryuu and Io relaxed and laughed too.

"He certainly will," said Io, smiling.

"Hey, it's good for him to have to deal with stuff getting shaken up, once in a while," said Ryuu. "He'd get bored if there were never any arrangements he needed to make."

The three of them chatted together for a while longer - or at least, Io and Ryuu chatted, while En mostly listened and nodded while he made his supply of doughnuts and coffee disappear. When he'd finished, he shuffled off again, muttering something about needing to catch up on his sleep, and Io and Ryuu followed him out of the great hall.

"So what do you suppose that was all about?" Io asked his friend.

"Search me," said Ryuu. "But En's not exactly what you'd call alarmist. If he says something's about to happen, it probably is. At least he doesn't seem to think it's anything bad."

"That's a real relief," Io agreed. "Still, it makes me curious..."

Ryuu laughed. "You're thinking about how you might turn a profit off of it."

"And why shouldn't I?" Io answered, smiling. "You've had your fun; why shouldn't I have a turn?"

"You should have come with me last night," said Ryuu.

Io felt his face warming. "I couldn't."

"No reason why not," said Ryuu. "It's a party for single people. You're single."

"And you're obsessed with pairing people off," said Io, a little more tartly than he'd meant to.

If Ryuu took offense to the tone, he didn't let it show.

"Come on, I'm serious," he said. "You should get out and have fun more often. There's no reason why you shouldn't come to a party. There's nothing in your laws against getting laid once in a while - I know, I checked."

"Ryuu!" Io was positive he was blushing now.

"Even if you don't want to do that," Ryuu continued, "you can still eat and dance and enjoy the music and socialize a little. It would have been fun. I'd have liked having you along."

"You didn't say any of this yesterday," said Io.

To his surprise, Ryuu colored a little and looked away. "Well, I miss you when you're not around. It's just you're usually around, so I don't think about it."

"Oh," said Io. Now he felt a little guilty for snapping at him. "Well, you know, I don't care for a lot of crowds and commotion. I'm not sure your idea of a good time is my idea of a good time. But I'm not opposed to taking a break once in a while, if you just wanted to do something for the fun of it."

Ryuu's face lit up. "Great! We should definitely do that sometime. Right now, though, I want to take a nap before I get back to work. I need to clear my head. See you later!"

Impulsively, he gave Io a quick, friendly hug before darting down the passage that led to his quarters. Io stood where he was, watching him go.

 _He really should be more careful when he does that,_ he mused. Io shook himself and began walking towards his own rooms. The problem with Ryuu was that he was essentially desire personified. It was hard to get too close to him without getting caught up in his aura, the one that made pulses race, breath come faster, and minds turn to thoughts that could definitely not be discussed in polite company. Even Io, who had been Ryuu's closest friend for years, was not immune to the effect. Most of the time he didn't notice it, but when they were in close physical contact...

 _He doesn't mean to do it,_ Io told himself. _He can't really help himself._

Forcing the matter out of his mind, Io walked briskly back to his rooms.

Being in his own private space put him in a better mood. It was the nature of the Palace of the Gods to give all its residents rooms that would suit their particular needs and desires, and Io's room was no exception. Where others might have comfortable furniture or wide windows to take in the Palace's spectacular views, Io's rooms might as well have been underground. His home was more or less a treasure vault that happened to have a bed in it. There was no furniture as such, only hundreds of coins and jewels that had been pushed and piled into heaps that were reasonably comfortable to sit on. The bed itself was large and soft, surrounded by curtains with golden embroidery worked into them, but it was nearly hidden by the treasures that surrounded it. Io had a vague notion that the floor was carpeted, but if it was, that carpet had long ago disappeared under a paving of pure gold. There were a few pillows scattered around to make sitting more comfortable, but they tended to disappear into corners and get forgotten. They were mostly for the convenience of visitors, anyway. Io was always perfectly at ease among his treasures. Sitting there counting and sorting them, all his concerns slid away from him, and for a little while he was perfectly content.

Well, mostly content. There was a small part of his mind that kept toying with the thought of what it might have been like to go to Ryuu's party. Well, why not? He might as well daydream a bit while he worked. It wasn't as if this job needed all his concentration. After all, it was just a silly dream. Nothing, he told himself, would ever really come of it.

* * *

There was nothing that could bring down Ryuu's mood.

He was always very content the day after one of his festivals. He was by nature a people person, and spending the entire night surrounded by the kind of people he got along best with - people who were just looking to have a good time and maybe show someone else a good time as well - always left him energized. He so rarely got the opportunity to give himself full play among the mortals, to dance and flirt and steal kisses as much as he liked. Occasionally, he'd even steal off somewhere private for more private amusements.

 _The only trouble with humans is that they get tired so fast..._

Still, he'd had a good time, and he was reasonably sure all his fellow partygoers had had an equally good time, and that was what was important. And now he had something else to look forward to, as well: he'd talked Io into going somewhere just for the fun of it. That wasn't an easy thing to do, with someone as work-oriented as Io. Most of the time, Io seemed perfectly happy to simply focus on his job. There were times when Ryuu was almost certain that if he wasn't there to haul Io out of his room once in a while, he'd just stay in there forever, sorting his coin collection while the world passed him by. In Ryuu's considered opinion, that couldn't be good for anybody.

 _I wonder if I should look into finding someone for him..._

He considered that notion, but ultimately, as he always had, he set it aside for another day. It was so infrequent that Io showed romantic interest or even plain old aesthetic appreciation of another person that even Ryuu couldn't guess what Io's type actually was. Solving that riddle would take more time and devotion than he usually had at hand.

 _Maybe someday,_ he thought. _Maybe if I can get him out into the world and doing things, I'll get a better idea of what's best for him._

That was an encouraging idea. He would definitely have to plan a good outing for the both of them.

In the meantime, he had a lot to do tonight. A lot of the pairings that had originated in last night's festivities would be temporary, brief liaisons meant to last only for the evening. Some, though, would become permanent with only a little encouragement, and Ryuu meant to see that as many as possible worked out. That would be enough to keep him busy for a while. First, though, he would have a good dinner and see what Io and the rest of the crowd had been doing all day. That would be a good way to start his evening.

He reached the dining hall at its peak hour and found it buzzing with activity. While the gods didn't strictly need to eat, having regular meals was good for their morale, and they all enjoyed the chance to socialize. Ryuu spotted the golden flash of Io's robes and scampered over to join him.

"Hey," he said, plopping into the seat across from him. "Busy day?"

"Reasonably satisfactory," Io replied. "And you?"

"I napped," said Ryuu. "And I made up some plans for everything I need to do for the next few days. I'm gonna be busy for a while."

Io smiled. "Nice to see you're making productive use of your time, at least."

"Hey, I always make good use of my time!" Ryuu retorted.

The two of them bantered a while, as they usually did at times like these. A few friends and acquaintances clustered around them, joining in the jokes. Io himself had never been very good at making friends, but he had Ryuu to do that for him. Everyone liked being around Ryuu, and Io basked in the reflected affection.

Everyone at the table had gotten into a lively gossip session, mostly centered around the scandalous doings of a particular human lord who all the local gods agreed was being amusingly foolish, when Io happened to glance up and catch sight of something unusual. One of the many doors to the dinging hall had swung open, and a young man in short-sleeved red robes came bounding in. He was followed closely by a much taller red-haired man who was dressed as any hardworking woodcutter would be. The axe he carried casually over one shoulder, though, gleamed as brightly golden as any of the trinkets in Io's hoard. He stared.

"Hey, Io," said Ryuu, "what are you... Oh!"

Then he, too, fell silent. Ripples of silence ran through the dining hall, as everyone else stopped whatever they were doing to stare at the newcomers. In this swiftly expanding silence, the younger of the two guests could clearly be heard to say, "Oh, wow, everything looks so good! We should eat here more often! Hi, guys! Hope you don't mind us visiting!"

"Is that who I think it is?" Ryuu whispered to Io.

Io only nodded and continued watching as the pair made their way through the crowded room. Yumoto and Gora, otherwise known as Chance and Fate, rarely visited the Palace of the Gods. They appeared to be quite happy living on earth, pretending to be human and operating a small bathhouse. Io could count on one hand the number of times he'd actually seen Fate come into the palace, and that was usually when there was something of such gravity going on that he had to get all of the gods' attention. Nothing bad seemed to be going on now, though. At the moment, Yumoto had picked out a place to sit and was busily attacking his food as if his entire purpose in coming to the Palace of the Gods was to eat as many rice cakes as he could in the time allotted. Gora, by contrast, was eating in a leisurely manner, like a man on vacation with all the time in the world. Going by his attitude, he ate his meals in the dining hall every day.

"What do you think is going on?" Ryuu asked the table in general.

En shrugged. "Can't be anything too bad. They don't look worried."

"Maybe they just wanted a chance of pace," Io remarked. "I mean, this is their palace too."

"Maybe," said Ryuu. He looked doubtfully across the room. "Still, I don't quite think so."

Privately, Io agreed. It seemed that most of the rest of the city did, as well. Not everyone took their meals in the dining hall under normal circumstances, but gods gossiped constantly. Throughout the meal, more and more people came crowding into the room to get a look at the greatest of the gods. By the time Yumoto was satisfied and Gora had finished his leisurely meal, the hall was packed to capacity. Gora pushed his plate away, drained his mug, and looked around at the crowd as though he had no idea how they'd all gotten there. Then he stood. The hall instantly became silent.

"Well," he said, "it looks like you're all here, or at least, enough of you are here that you can tell anyone who isn't what they missed."

He walked around from behind his table to pace back and forth at the front of the room. All eyes tracked him as he moved.

"As you already know," he said, "we've always had two underworlds - the Land of the Peaceful Dead for those who have lived good lives, and the Land of the Accursed Dead, for those who were wicked. My brother and I have been talking to the lord and lady of those lands, and we've agreed that with the human population growing as it has, it's time for us to create a third underworld."

A buzz of interest thrummed through the room. Gora paused a moment to let everyone absorb the surprise.

"That's right," he said. "This will be the Land of the Blessed Dead, a special place for those who have lived exemplary lives - heroes, saints, great artists and thinkers. It will be a place of beauty and luxury, to truly reward those who have earned it."

All right, Io thought, that was interesting. He'd never given a lot of thought to the underworlds. His particular specialty was in the things people couldn't take with them when the died. This announcement couldn't have much to do with him, but a development of that magnitude couldn't help but intrigue him. He wondered what this new world would be like. It sounded like it would be rather wonderful, even by his opulent standards.

"You're probably wondering why I'm telling you all this," said Gora. "The truth is, this place is going to need someone to run it. I'm asking for volunteers. I want one of you to take on the role of Lord or Lady of the Blessed Dead, and relocate to the underworld. You'll be allowed to keep your original designation and duties, but you'll be primarily responsible for this new assignment. I know this is a lot to ask, so I don't ask any of you to make up your minds right away. Think it over for a while. Yumoto and I will be here for the next week or so. If you feel like you're the right one for the job, come and talk to either of us. If we approve you, you can start right away."

Having made his point, he picked up his axe, beckoned to his brother, and started for the exit. Yumoto waved cheerfully to the dumbstruck crowd and caroled out "Bye, guys!" before he vanished into the hallway.

As soon as they were gone, the dining hall erupted into chatter.

"Well, what do you make of that?" said Ryuu. "At least now we know why En was feeling unsettled. Someone was putting in a new piece of the universe."

"Kind of a funny idea," said En dreamily. "A whole new infinite space that wasn't there before..."

Ryuu grinned. "Planning on asking for the job?"

"Not me!" said En. "I have all the work I need already. Why don't you do it?"

"No way!" said Ryuu. "I don't care how nice the place is, I can't be stuffed away in an underworld where no living mortals will ever see me. I like live people. Hey, Io, why don't you ask for the job? It'll give you a bigger place to keep your stuff," he teased.

Io laughed. "Tempting, but I think I'll stay here. You know I wouldn't like being that far away from you."

Ryuu looked pleased at that. "Yeah, that wouldn't be fun for either of us. You'd better stay put."

"Somebody will do it," said En. "Maybe Aurite. He likes running things."

"That would make sense," Ryuu agreed. "He judges people anyway. He might as well go with them all the way down."

"He's probably already asking about it," said Io, nodding. It was a tidy solution, and would settle everything quite nicely.

"Even if he's not, it's not our problem," Ryuu concluded. "So, Io, remember when we were talking about hanging out later? Have you got time for that tonight?"

Io started to say that he didn't, then reconsidered. There was really no reason why he shouldn't go somewhere, tonight or any other night. His work didn't really require a lot of personal attention.

"Yes, I think so," he said.

Ryuu beamed. "Fantastic. Meet me back at my place around six bells. I have made plans." He made this pronouncement with more gravity than Gora had used when he'd announced his intent to rearrange the universe.

"I'll be there," Io promised.

Ryuu grinned. "I'll be waiting!"

The meal ended with people departing in clusters, all of them chattering about the news of the day. Io let himself get swept up by the crowds and carried down the hallway, out of sight of his other friends. That was all right. Io had, for the moment, had his fill of socializing. Ryuu was the one who socialized; Io just went along with whatever he was doing. That was one of the things Io appreciated about Ryuu: he genuinely liked people - not just as romantic partners, but just to have them around. He had a knack for seeing the best in everybody and enjoyed seeing them happy. Having him around made it easier for Io to feel as though he liked everyone, too.

Thinking pleasantly along these lines made him realize that he was actually looking forward to tonight's outing. It would be nice, doing something for just the two of them. It had been a while since the two of them had done something like that. He wondered what sort of plans Ryuu had in mind.

 _Something entertaining, I'm sure. Things are never boring when he's around._

* * *

Just before the City's bell tower chimed six, Io stood in front of his mirror and contemplated his reflection in the glass. Most of the time, he didn't worry much about what he looked like unless he was appearing in front of his human worshipers. For them, he made more of an effort to look regal and imposing. For everyday casual wear, he generally made do with the simple robe worn over shirt and loose trousers that most gods favored, usually with a loop of gold chain or gemstones around his waist. Jewelry liked him. Sometimes, in fact, if he wasn't paying attention, any such ornaments that happened to be lying around would start crawling up his arms like small lonely creatures. Some people found this unsettling, so he tried not to let it happen in public.

Ryuu, though, cared about fashion. When he went about among humans, he always made certain that what he was wearing was absolutely the most stylish thing available. Even among his fellow gods, he enjoyed expressing his own personal style. For him, Io felt he had to try harder. He studied his reflection critically, adjusted the thin golden diadem on his brow, tugged at the sleeves of his gold-embroidered shirt, and settled his jeweled belt. Deciding that he looked as good as he was going to get, he vanished from his room and reappeared on Ryuu's doorstep exactly at the stroke of six.

As the final chime rang out, Ryuu opened the door and peered outside. He grinned.

"I knew you'd be here," he said. "When I said sixish, I didn't mean you had to be here exactly at six."

Io smiled. "Time is money."

That made Ryuu laugh too. He opened his door wide and let Io step through it. Io was gratified to see that Ryuu had dressed up for the occasion, too, in an extravagantly embroidered shirt and matching robe. Io had to smile to look at him. He looked so pleased with himself for having the opportunity to show off his haute couture.

"So where are we going tonight?" Io asked.

"I thought we might go see a play," Ryuu replied. "There's a good one opening on the Sunlit Isles tonight."

Io smiled. "That sounds like just the thing."

The Sunlit Isles were located on the far western edge of the continent, and was well known as the home of many great thinkers, writers, artists, and performers. Judging by the crowds gathered to see this performance, the players Ryuu had brought Io to see lived up to their country's reputation. Of course, the two gods didn't bother with getting in line or buying tickets. The show was being held at an outdoor amphitheater, ringed by pillared archways. Ryuu and Io simply picked one out with a good view and sat there side by side, their feet dangling over the edge as they enjoyed the show.

The play ended up being a comedy called _Gods Bless You!_ , centered on the adventures of a wily young man who, coming home drunk and singing one night, was accosted by a somewhat overzealous priest of the goddess of music, and who woke up the next morning having been dragooned into the priesthood. His subsequent adventures - first in trying unsuccessfully to extricate himself from his new role, then in dealing with the naively optimistic new friend who'd gotten him into the whole mess, and with the pompous, overbearing chief priest - had Io and Ryuu doubled over with laughter. By the time the chief priest had been proven corrupt and the genial one installed in his place, Io was swiping away tears of mirth.

"That was amazing," he said. "I can't remember when I've laughed so much at anything."

"I knew you'd like it," said Ryuu.

Io nodded. "It was a lot of fun. Thank you for talking me into it."

"Hey, if you're not ready to rush home yet," siad Ryuu, "I know something else fun we can do."

Io regarded him thoughtfully, and a trifle warily, knowing what he knew about Ryuu's idea of fun. "What kind of thing?"

"I know where there's a warlord type celebrating his son's engagement with a big bash," said Ryuu. "We could crash the party and go dancing."

"I don't know..." said Io slowly.

"Come on," Ryuu pleaded. "It'll be fun. Please?"

Io felt himself weakening. He was not ordinarily much of a dancer. On the other hand, he considered how he'd felt last night, knowing that Ryuu was out dancing and flirting with the humans. If Io accepted this invitation, he'd have Ryuu's attentions all to himself. That had to be worth something.

"All right, then," he said, smiling slightly. "You talked me into it."

Ryuu gave a gleeful whoop. He caught Io's hand, and Io once again felt the world go warm and blurry. Then his vision cleared, and he found himself at the edge of a village square. It was night over the town, but lanterns had been strung from every roof and fence, and a bonfire burned at the center of it. On a makeshift stage, a rather embarrassed-looking young man in an elaborate green kimono was seated next to a very pretty young woman who kept peering coyly at him from behind her fan. This, Io assumed, was the warlord's son and his new bride-to-be. Judging by the way the two of them were looking at each other, it was easy to guess how Ryuu had known this celebration was taking place tonight. They seemed a well-matched pair, anyway - the young man looking handsome and kind, the young woman sweet and intelligent.

"You do good work," Io said to Ryuu, who beamed with pride.

"Come on," he said. "Let's help these two celebrate."

Ryuu made a flourish with one hand, conjuring up a human disguise. Io copied his example, giving himself the same sort of "festival day best" clothing, cheap but colorful and festive, that the rest of the crowd was wearing. Once they were suitably attired, Ryuu took Io by the arm and led him into the crowd.

For a moment, Io was slightly overwhelmed. He was not used to being at the center of so much commotion, and the crowds and noise and whirling colors disoriented him. Then Ryuu took him into his arms and began guiding him through a dance, and Io willingly fell into step with him. Io might be a bit stiff when it came to dancing, but Ryuu was light on his feet, and had the gift of leading a partner so skillfully that they seemed to be better than they really were. It wasn't long before Io was relaxed and enjoying himself. All around him, the music swirled, the lights glimmered, and Ryuu was laughing. His eyes were bright with excitement, his cheeks slightly flushed, and his smile could have lit up the night. Looking at him, Io didn't feel crowded anymore. He felt as if he and Ryuu were the only people in the world.

It came as a surprise to him when the music suddenly ended with a flourish. Io stumbled a little, falling forward into Ryuu's arms.

"Easy, there!" said Ryuu, laughing.

"Sorry," said Io. "My mind was wandering."

He raised his head, trying to set himself upright, and found himself looking up into Ryuu's eyes. They were standing so close together, their faces only inches apart, and Io was intensely aware of that magical magnetism that Ryuu exuded that made him almost irresistible. Io stopped breathing.

Then Ryuu stepped back and released his hold on Io. The crowd was breaking up now, the musicians packing up their instruments.

"I guess it's been a long day," said Ryuu. "Come on. I'll see you home."

"That's probably a good idea," Io agreed.

The two of them slipped into the shadows and vanished, reappearing in the Palace of the Gods, just outside Io's door. In a gallant gesture, Ryuu swept it open for him.

"Thank you for inviting me out," said Io as he stepped inside. "I enjoyed it."

"It was fun," Ryuu agreed. "We should do this more often."

Io gave him a half-smiled. "Well, you know where to find me."

Ryuu laughed. "Gonna make me do all the work, huh? Well, okay, then. I'll think of something else fun for us to do next time."

"I know you will," said Io. "I'll be looking forward to it."

"I'd better not let you down, then," said Ryuu.

He grinned and leaned closer, and for one dizzying instant, Io thought Ryuu was going to kiss him. Instead, he just ruffled Io's hair affectionately before vanishing. Io shook his head slowly, trying to clear it. It didn't help much. With a heavy sigh, Io went into his room and shut the door firmly behind him.

 _I think I've made an error in my calculations._

Io had never been particularly good at feelings. He'd never really needed to be. His job was economics, and all he needed for that was to understand how people moved money around. He could reduce it all to mathematical equations and never drag emotions into it anywhere. If anything, he discouraged them, on the principle that a person under the influence of strong emotion was likely to do something foolish and lose everything on a hunch.

The only exception he'd ever allowed himself was Ryuu. Somehow, Io had never been able to turn him away. Ryuu was like a jewel himself, bright and sparkling, impossible to look away from. When he was around, the world seemed a little kinder, challenges a little more approachable, and everything just a little bit more fun. There were times when Io found the people he had to work with to be hopelessly self-centered, Ryuu's genuine affection for the whole world was a relief. He had a way of seeing the lovable qualities in everyone - it took a truly vile person indeed to make Ryuu write them off as a loss. Ryuu had been Io's friend when the other gods had looked at him and seen nothing of worth.

And all this time, Io had been telling himself that friendship was enough. He'd told himself that of course he felt Ryuu's attraction - everyone did, and that was normal and nothing to be concerned about. He'd told himself that he had enough self-control that it didn't matter, and he'd pretended that he didn't mind when he watched Ryuu pursuing everyone in the universe who wasn't him.

 _Just goes to show how easy it is to deceive yourself._ Io dropped onto one of the heaps of gold coins that served as furniture, and felt them obligingly shift around to make a comfortable hollow for him. He stared up at the ceiling and forced himself to work through some long-overdue calculations.

The really frustrating thing was, he probably _could_ get Ryuu's attentions, at least for a little while. Io knew the right things to say. He could say that he was nervous about approaching other people when he had so little experience with amorous matters. He could say he wanted his first time to be with someone he knew well and trusted. Ryuu would probably be willing to go along with it, at least up until the point where he felt Io had learned enough, or until someone else caught his eternally shifting attention.

 _And I don't want to be a temporary fling. I want him to stay with me._

And that, of course, was impossible. Ryuu wasn't meant to love only one person. He needed to be free to do his job, and that meant being free to love everyone. Wanting to keep Ryuu for himself was selfish and wrong.

 _Well, I am selfish. Everyone says so, so I suppose it must be true._

The thought of it made him almost want to laugh. If there was one phrase he hated more than any other, it was the oft-repeated criticism of "Money can't buy happiness." Usually when he heard it, it was a not-so-subtle put-down towards his followers, implying that they should serve Aurite or someone with equally lofty values. Well, here was Io, god of prosperity, whose wealth couldn't be calculated in a mortal lifetime, and none of it could buy him happiness. Or love.

 _All right, I admit it. I'm in love with him. I suppose I have been for a long time._ He sighed deeply and closed his eyes. _And there's nothing I can do about it._


	2. You Can't Take it With You

Io paused in telling his story. This part was always difficult for him to think about, even now. Even knowing it was all going to turn out all right, even after years of happy marriage, the memory of that pain and hopelessness was still clear as ever. Next to him, Akoya was listening with wide-eyed interest. He'd even forgotten to keep opening presents.

The tension was broken by the sound of a door opening and closing. A few seconds later, Ryuu ambled in, his arms full of bakery boxes.

"Hey, guys," he said cheerfully. "I thought you might be ready for a break by now, so I brought snacks."

Io gave a sigh of relief and smiled. "Yes, I think a break is exactly what we need right now, thank you."

He clapped his hands, and one of the house staff peeked into the room to see what he wanted. Io sent him away with a request for tea and napkins, and Ryuu began opening up his boxes. He'd brought along a veritable picnic: stacks of finger sandwiches, puff pastries, assorted turnovers, and other things that were easy to eat without utensils. One box held nothing but desserts, including some truly elaborate cupcakes and a dozen of the macarons Akoya loved so much. Io had to smile at that. They'd been married only a few days and already Ryuu was getting the hang of things.

"So how's the job going?" Ryuu asked, as he made himself a seat among the unopened presents. "Not getting bored without me, are you?"

Akoya said, "Io has been telling me tales about your past together."

"Oh, yeah? Which ones?" asked Ryuu, looking amused. "Is it the one where we turned some desert ruins into a magical city for that wandering prince to blunder into? That was fun. Io got to pretend to be a sultan, and I was a dancing girl."

"That sounds fascinating, and you're going to tell me about it later," said Akoya, "but right now, he's talking about how the two of you first got together."

"Hoo, boy." Ryuu shook his head, grinning sheepishly. "Not my proudest moment, by a long shot."

Io smirked. "Nice to know what you really think of me."

"Hey, no, I didn't mean it like that!" said Ryuu, laughing. "Gimme a break, here! What I mean is, I should have figured out sooner what was going on. I'm supposed to be the god of love, and my best friend is totally gone on me, and I didn't have a clue."

"Well, I wasn't really making it easy for you," said Io consolingly. "And you figured it out eventually."

"Yeah, eventually," said Ryuu. "After I missed all the warning signs, and En had to rub my nose in it."

"Him?" asked Akoya, seeming surprised. "What has he got to do with anything?"

Ryuu picked up a sandwich and took a thoughtful bite of it.

"Well," he said, "it was like this..."

* * *

Ryuu returned to his rooms that night in a good mood. He always enjoyed spending time around Io. There was something so reassuringly solid about Io. If the foundation of the Heavenly City were to ever crumble and break, they could probably use Io to prop up the heavens. Ryuu was glad he'd managed to coax his friend out of his hidey-hole to go and socialize a bit. Io was so serious most of the time that when he smiled, it seemed to light up the world.

 _He really is gorgeous,_ Ryuu mused, as he began changing into his pajamas. _Too bad he seems set on staying single forever. That's a real waste. I really should give some thought to finding him somebody..._

But now was not the time to worry about that. Tonight, he would just be happy that the two of them had enjoyed themselves so much. After all, if Io really wanted somebody else in his life, he knew who to ask about it. Maybe it was even better this way. After all, if Io found a sweetheart of his own, he'd have that much less time for Ryuu, and that would be a sore loss to him.

Humming softly to himself, Ryuu moved around his room, making sure everything was as it should be. A few candles flickered on a stand, and he checked them over carefully. Each of those flames represented an ongoing project of his, and he liked to make sure they were all proceeding as they should before he settled in for a night's sleep. If any of them were guttering or burning down too quickly, it would be a sign that there was a problem. Tonight, though, they were all burning steadily, and Ryuu nodded his satisfaction. All was right with the world, for tonight at least, so it was time for him to go to bed and get some sleep.

Many people, even gods, would have assumed that the place where Ryuu bedded down for the night usually had more people than just him in it. The truth was, he'd very seldom brought anyone to his own personal bed. It was a bit of a faux pas to bring mortals to the Heavenly City, unless they were attendants. Ryuu didn't have any attendants and didn't plan to - he had a shrewd notion that affiliating himself permanently with a group of humans was liable to lead to interpersonal drama of the sort he didn't want to deal with. Getting involved with his fellow gods would have been just as complicated. Gods tended to be long-term thinkers, and didn't usually care for the idea of short-term liaisons. Any god he got involved with would expect him to _stay_ involved, an idea he balked at. The idea of being tied down to anyone forever unsettled him in ways he didn't like to examine too closely. Humans had their drawbacks - they tired quickly, and were easy to hurt if you weren't careful - but they were willing to accept his presence as a temporary pleasure rather than a permanent fixture, and that made them preferable than anything he could get in the Heavenly City.

 _Anyway, I have Io if I want someone to talk to._ Other people might come and go, but Io would be part of his life forever...

Somewhere in the middle of that thought, Ryuu dozed off. In his dreams, he found himself wandering through the Palace of the Gods, but something had gone wrong with it. The bright colors he was used to had gone dull and gray. Dust lay thickly over everything. The delicate tapestries that adorned the walls were frayed and crumbling, and the floor beneath Ryuu's feet was cracked. Some of the furniture stood askew, legs buckled or broken. The windows, which usually showed the brilliant expanse of stars and slowly moving planets in the celestial sky, were dark and empty. The worst part was that Ryuu knew that somehow, this was his problem - perhaps not his fault, but his responsibility. There was something he needed to do, some simple, obvious thing, that would make everything better, but somehow he couldn't remember what it was. That bothered him, and he walked slowly through the ruined halls of his home, racking his brain to remember the solution that stubbornly refused to come to him.

At length, he came to the main hall, where the tables should have been spread with food at every hour of the day. Now they were spread with dishes, but most of them were empty, or filled only with a few desiccated scraps too far gone to even be identified as food. Experimentally, Ryuu touched a ceramic bowl, and it crumbled to dust at his touch.

A flicker of motion caught his eye. Ryuu turned around and saw a female figure standing with her back to him at the far end of the hall. She must have realized he was there, because she She giggled and turned quickly away. Her face was covered by a gauzy veil.. Ryuu grinned and relaxed, feeling himself on firmer ground. This was how his dreams were _supposed_ to go.

"Hey," he called out, "who are you?"

"Who are _you_?" she answered coyly.

"Honey, I can be anyone you want me to be," he replied.

She giggled again. "Then show me."

She darted down a corridor, and Ryuu pursued. She was well ahead of him, but she wasn't running very fast, and paused every so often to glance back over her shoulder and make sure he was still following her. This wasn't really a pursuit, it was a game, and Ryuu thought he could guess what the prize would be. Sure enough, at the end of a corridor, the woman ducked through a door to one of the bedrooms, leaving it invitingly open. Ryuu grinned and stepped inside. The room was dimly lit, with only a thin silvery light coming in through the windows, making everything look blue and gray. The woman stood in the center of the room, her back still turned towards him, her gauzy garments floating around her in some unfelt wind.

"Hey," he said, "why don't you turn around? Don't you want to look at me?"

"Who are you?" she asked.

And suddenly, with sinking horror, he realized that he _didn't know_. Somehow in the last few minutes, he had forgotten his own name. He racked his brains, but nothing would come to him. The realization left him cold. Suddenly, he didn't want to be doing this anymore. He needed to figure out his name. He needed to figure out what was wrong, before it all went too wrong to ever be fixed. He needed to get out of here.

"Sorry," he blurted, "I just remembered, I've got to..."

The woman was slowly turning around. Ryuu stared, fascinated, as she reached up and undid her veil. There was nothing underneath her clothes, only shadows. She began drifting towards him, empty sleeves outstretched, cold wind whipping around her. Ryuu screamed...

...and sat up in bed. The room around him was still dark, but it was rosy with candlelight rather than gray, and the air was warm and still. Ryuu sat still for a few seconds, collecting himself, trying to figure out what had just happened to him. He did not, as a general rule, have nightmares. When he dreamed, his dreams usually weren't all that different from his waking life. He had no idea what had brought this on.

But he was going to find out.

A few minutes later, he was standing outside En's door, pounding his fist against it hard enough to probably wake the whole palace. It was not, however, enough to succeed in waking En. Ryuu switched to kicking the door instead. He'd been at it several minutes when the door finally opened, and En, looking cranky and sleepier than usual, poked his head into the hall.

"What's your problem?" he demanded. "I was _sleeping_."

"You're always sleeping," Ryuu snapped back. "How about telling me what's the big idea?"

"You sound cranky," said En. "Maybe you should go back to sleep, too."

Ryuu gave him an aggravated look. "You gave me a _nightmare_."

"Well, you needed one," said En. "What else was I supposed to do?"

"What do you mean, I needed one? There's no way I needed a nightmare," Ryuu objected.

En sighed. "If you're going to make a racket, you had better come inside."

That wasn't what Ryuu wanted. What he'd wanted was for En to apologize and promise to never do it again. Going into his room probably was not the fastest way to accomplish that, but what else could he do? If he continued trying to pick a fight with En out in the hallway, either En would _force_ him to go back to sleep right there on the floor, or his fellow gods would emerge from their rooms to demand to know why he'd woken them from their rest. Either way, it was probably best for everyone if he went along with what En wanted, for now, anyway.

"Fine," he said, "but you'd better have a good explanation."

En stepped away from the door and let Ryuu wander inside. In many ways, En's room was superficially like Ryuu's, in that it was dimly lit and designed in such a way that almost any surface in it could be comfortably rested upon. The difference was that in Ryuu's room, the suggestion was that once you'd decided to lie down, other things would start happening. En's room was designed strictly for sleeping. Everything in it - the furniture, the floors, the walls - was covered in soft padding, mostly in various shades of blue. The furniture was deep and soft, pleasant to curl up on, and even the tables and shelves had quilted covers to make them comfortable to rest against. Ryuu picked out a spot on the sofa and flopped ungracefully into it. En sat down next to him, arranging himself in a more-or-less upright position that suggested that he at least intended to try to pay attention.

"So, what's got you all riled up?" he asked.

"As if you didn't know," Ryuu muttered.

En shrugged. "Everyone gets nightmares once in a while, even me. Maybe especially me. You don't see me making a fuss about them."

"Yeah, but _why_?" Ryuu asked. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Well, tell me about it and maybe I can help you figure it out," said En.

Ryuu regarded him skeptically. "You don't already know what I dreamed about?"

"Not really, no," En said. "It's like delivering the mail. I don't have to read every message I deliver, I just have to make sure they all get sent out. All the signs were that it was time for you to have a nightmare, so I sent you one."

"I should have known your job made no sense," Ryuu complained.

"I do what I gotta do," said En philosophically. "So tell me about this dream."

Reluctantly, Ryuu spilled it all. The thought of it still unnerved him, and he didn't really like talking about it, but En's sleepy, detached manner made it a little easier. He made it seem like nothing was really worth getting excited over. And really, when you looked at everything clearly, what was so scary about a lot of clothes moving around by themselves? It wasn't as though they could hurt you. By the time Ryuu had finished telling everything, he found that he felt a lot better.

 _What do you know? Maybe En knows his business, after all._

When Ryuu had told everything he had to tell, En leaned back in his seat, his eyes narrowing to sleepy slits.

"Hmm," he said. "That's got a lot going on. There's the business with the palace falling down - that's important. Then there's the girl, and the question she kept asking. Why do you think it was a girl?"

"Huh?" asked Ryuu, momentarily thrown.

"I mean, as opposed to a guy," said En. "You like them both pretty equally, don't you?"

Ryuu shrugged. "I don't think it's important. I mean, there aren't but so many options. Might as well be a girl as opposed to something else."

"Nah, that's not how it works," said En. "These things aren't random. If you dreamed about a woman, there was a reason she was there. But we can move on."

"Yeah, the other stuff seems more important," Ryuu agreed. "The palace falling down around me, and the way she kept asking who I was."

En nodded slowly. "I think those two are the same thing."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's two things you couldn't remember," En explained. "You couldn't remember your name, and you couldn't remember what you needed to do to fix the palace. I mean, you're a god, and the palace is kind of a symbol of the whole pantheon. Your name is your identity, so if you can't remember it, it means you're not being true to yourself somehow. Either way, it sounds like on some level, you're falling down on the job."

Ryuu shook his head. "But I am doing my job. I'm down on earth all the time, helping people pair off. Sometimes more than just pairs. I'm doing everything I'm supposed to be doing."

"There's obviously some part of you that doesn't think so," said En. "The girl works into it, too. There's something important you think you should be doing, but you aren't really sure what it is, so you chase girls instead because it's easier and you can say 'hey, I'm supposed to do this, it's my job' and feel like you're accomplishing something."

Ryuu scowled. He'd never had any shame about his "after hours" activities. As far as he was concerned, he'd never done anything wrong. He'd never pressured anyone who hadn't wanted to go along with him, never encouraged anyone to break faith with someone else, and he was always careful to tell his partners who he was and what they could expect from him. He didn't take advantage of anyone's innocence or use his powers to coax someone unwilling. It had never occurred to him that there might be other problems involved, and he didn't like having it pointed out to him.

"So what am I supposed to be doing?" he asked.

"Search me," said En. "I have all I can do to keep up with my own job."

"You're no help," Ryuu muttered.

"Sure I am," said En. "You didn't know there was a problem before. Now you do. You can think about it and maybe figure out what you're doing wrong."

Ryuu sighed. "Thanks a lot."

"I do what I can," said En. "Hey, do you want to stay here the rest of the night? You might sleep better."

Ryuu thought seriously. Did he want to go back to his room alone right now?

"Yeah," he said. "I think I might."

En smiled. "Well, there's plenty of room. Me, I'm going back to bed. Don't wake me when you leave, 'kay?"

"No problem," Ryuu assured him.

En shuffled back to his own room, letting the living room lights wink out behind him. Ryuu settled himself down on the sofa. It was a nice sofa, more than big enough for him to stretch out on comfortably, and the cushions were wonderfully soft. The air in the room was warm and smelled of soothing things - lavender, vanilla, a hint of fresh water. Almost against his will, Ryuu felt his eyes begin to slide open. He pulled at a blanket that had been thrown casually over the back of the sofa and cocooned himself in it. He drifted off almost immediately. This time, if he dreamed, it didn't bother him at all.

* * *

The next morning, Io came to breakfast late and in a slightly sour mood. He had not slept well the previous night, and had gotten up later than his usual hour as a result. He arrived at the great hall and found Ryuu was already there, sitting at his usual table and talking earnestly to En. Io frowned a little.

 _Isn't that just like him? Last night, he's only interested in me, and this morning I'm already forgotten._

He squelched that thought as unfair and needlessly critical. En and Ryuu had been friends for a long time. Ryuu had every right to talk to him, especially if Io was rude enough to be late for breakfast. It wasn't as though Io thought for a minute that Ryuu was interested in En. Ryuu tended to like his partners a bit more proactive, and En certainly didn't fit the bill.

 _And neither do I._ The people Ryuu gravitated towards were invariably the adventurous type - outgoing, thrill-seeking, willing to try anything once. The last person he was likely to get involved with was someone was practical and cautious as Io. Doubtless he'd become bored pretty quickly even if he tried.

Io dropped into a seat at an empty table and heaved a sigh of sheer frustration. What was he supposed to do about this? He didn't want to spoil his friendship with Ryuu, he didn't want to be rejected, he didn't want a temporary fling, and he didn't see how he could get anything else. Apparently he was just doomed to suffer. Not, he mused, a very appetizing prospect when you had a reasonable expectation of living forever.

 _I suppose I ought to tell him anyway..._

Io shied away from the thought. Yes, it would be the honest thing to do, but he really didn't think he had the nerve. Maybe if he just waited long enough, he could resign himself to the idea. They could go back to being friends, he could treasure the moments they had together, and nothing would have to change.

He sighed again. That was not the future he wanted to look forward to.

In an effort to pry himself away from his morose thoughts, he scanned the room for something to distract him. His gaze fell on the one thing that was different from usual: the two men sitting at the high table. It seemed that Gora and Yumoto were making good on their promise to stay in the Heavenly City until a new ruler of the underworld had been selected. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, and perhaps they were. The Heavenly City was meant to be a retreat from the sometimes substantial pressures of being a god, a place where every conceivable luxury was there for the asking, ranging from physical indulgences to the purely intellectual pleasures. To two people who kept up the pretense of being human most of the time, down to running an actual business, albeit in a rather cavalier and rather inconsistent fashion, this must have seemed like a rather nice vacation.

 _Though I suppose that new underworld they're building must be nice too,_ he thought vaguely, as he unenthusiastically helped himself to breakfast. _I wonder if it will be as fine as the City..._

And just like that, the idea came to him. If staying in the City forever, constantly seeing the one thing he wanted most and could never have, was going to hurt him, there was no reason why he should have to stay. He could walk up to Gora right now and ask for the job. Obviously it was still available, or Gora wouldn't still be here. If he was willing to let Io have the job, then he could retreat to another world entirely, and maybe that distance would be enough to give him some perspective.

 _And maybe,_ a small treacherous part of him whispered, _Ryuu will realize what he's missing if I leave._

Of course, he probably wouldn't get the job. Probably it would go to someone like Aurite, who had experience with ruling. Besides, Io had a shrewd notion that Gora would probably guess his motives at once and dismiss his request outright. Surely he would know that whatever was motivating Io right now, it wasn't an unselfish desire to tend to the happiness of the deceased.

On the other hand, it wouldn't cost anything to ask. Io was a great believer in taking risks that wouldn't cost him anything if they failed. He dawdled over his breakfast, making sure that most of the other gods had finished and wandered off before he made his move. It wasn't until he saw Gora push his plate away and stand up that Io made his move. He slipped out of the dining hall just seconds after Gora did. The man was moving at no more than an amble, and it took very little effort to catch up to him.

"Excuse me," Io called after him, "have you got a moment?"

"Sure, I have time." Gora stopped walking and turned towards Io, leaning one shoulder against the wall and folding his arms in an attitude that suggested he was prepared to stand and listen for as long as Io cared to talk.

Io almost lost his nerve then. He'd never really spoken to Fate before, except for a few words in passing here and there. He'd had the impression that Gora was a taciturn man, not much given to idle conversation. He was also a lot taller than Io, and a lot more muscular. It was ever so slightly intimidating, even without the axe.

"About that new underworld," Io began carefully. "Is the position you mentioned still open?"

"It is," Gora agreed.

"I see," said Io. Taking a steadying breath, he said, "Would you be willing to consider me for the post?"

Gora gave him a long, searching look. "You really sure you want it? It's a big responsibility. Once you take the job, it's yours forever - no backing down."

Io hesitated. He had been so caught up in his own worries that he hadn't thought much about the larger implications of his plan. Was this really something he could do?

"I'm a collector of precious things," he said slowly. "I gather them close to me and keep them safe. I don't see why that shouldn't extend to people as well as jewels."

Gora smiled. "Good answer. All right, you're in."

"What? Just like that?" asked Io, taken aback. "Don't you want to think about it, or see who else offers?"

"Nope," said Gora casually. "You snooze, you lose. If they wanted the job, they had all day yesterday to ask about it."

"Oh," said Io. Now he almost felt guilty. What if, by his reckless offer, he'd taken the job away from someone more suitable - someone who might have even wanted it more, but hadn't been quite so impulsive in asking about it?

Gora smiled. "Don't look so worried. I think you're right - you've got what it takes. Go ahead and start making whatever arrangements you need to make. You can start tomorrow."

"So soon?" Io asked.

"Why not? Sooner the better," said Gora. "It will take a little time for you to get acclimated to your new home, so you might as well start right away."

"Well, if you're sure," said Io. He was beginning to wonder if he had perhaps been a bit hasty, but there was no getting out of it now. Gora might be constitutionally laid-back, but he was also the undisputed ruler of the gods. If he said Io was to take the job, then that was the end of it.

"I'm sure," said Gora, and he did indeed look very certain. Io decided he was going to have to content himself with that. "I'll start getting things ready down there. Yumoto will fetch you tomorrow so we can show you the ropes."

"So what should I do?" Io asked.

Gora shrugged. "Anything you want. Tell your friends you're moving. Talk to your priests and let them know you're about to shake things up for them. Sort your belongings, if you want to. Your rooms here are going to be closed up when you move, but we'll make sure all your things go with you when you leave."

In spite of himself, Io almost laughed at that.

 _What do you know. It turns out if Gora is helping, you_ can _take it with you._

"I'll be ready," Io promised.

"Good," said Gora. "Tomorrow, then."

He turned and sauntered off, his business apparently concluded. Io was left alone in the hallway to consider the magnitude of the thing he'd just done.

An odd thought surfaced in his mind: he was going to become ruler of a world. No matter how you looked at it, that had to be a step up. No one in the celestial realms really took him very seriously, besides one or two friends, and even those were more because they liked him than because they really thought highly of his work. It might be nice to be respected and admired for a change. Perhaps it would make up for some of what he was giving up. If nothing else, this new job promised to keep him busy for a while, and that might be the best thing for him.

All the same, he realized he'd just agreed to leave the place that had been his home since the dawn of civilization and going to a place he'd never even seen before - that no one, in fact, had seen before, other than Chance and Fate themselves. He was about to undertake a job he really wasn't sure he knew how to do, and a lot of peoples' welfare and future happiness was riding on how good a job he did with it.

One thing was for sure, he thought, as he began wandering towards his room. It was probably a good thing he had packing to do, because he was probably going to be having another sleepless night.

* * *

Ryuu sat on a fence, watching the drama that was playing out in front of him. It had taken some tricky work to get this particular couple to notice each other, but now everything was coming along beautifully. The local lord's youngest son was strolling around the garden hand in hand with the dashing jewel merchant who had just "happened" to turn up at a dinner party with one of the other guests. It had taken some finagling on Ryuu's part to make sure that the party would be happening when the merchant was in port, and that said merchant would manage to get an invitation, but when it had all come together, the results were everything Ryuu could have hoped for. He smiled contentedly as the two lovers continued to promenade around the garden, oblivious to the fact that a god was watching them. They probably wouldn't have cared if they'd known, so wrapped up were they in each other's company.

 _Humans are lucky,_ Ryuu thought.

If someone had come along and asked him what he'd meant by that, he wouldn't have been able to explain clearly. It was just that the couples he helped to find each other always seemed so happy. He had watched them so often, going from the first breathless moments of infatuation to the comforting solidarity of a relationship that had weathered years of ups and downs. His fleeting relationships, if you could call them that, had always been pleasant, but they lacked the depth that these humans seemed to enjoy. He knew why it wouldn't work for him. Humans were one thing - they had short lives, and if they made a bad job of one of them, they could always reincarnate and try again. Gods didn't have that luxury. Whatever they did, they did for keeps. The thought of making a choice like that and choosing wrongly terrified Ryuu. He knew he couldn't face the possibility of spending the rest of eternity with someone he no longer felt drawn to.

Now, if he could have found someone he _wouldn't_ lose interest in, that would be different. He let himself dwell on the idea of an end to the constant round of catch-and-release. There were those who assumed he could go from temporary relationship to temporary relationship painlessly because he didn't care about any of the people he dallied with, but they were wrong. Ryuu loved everyone - that was his nature - and because he loved them, he did what he could to make them happy for an evening before turning them over to someone better equipped to make them happy for a lifetime. It hurt a little every time, and if there was a better alternative, he'd gratefully take it. It would be such a relief to love someone and not have it hurt. It would be nice to have someone who was always there for him, someone who cared about him for who he was and not just admired him for what he was.

Too bad there was no such person. He was reasonably sure he'd have noticed by now if there was.

 _Ha, I should tell Gora to fix that next time I see him._

He straightened, suddenly electrified. He'd thought it as a joke - normally he had no idea where Gora was or where to find him - but today he realized he _did_ know. He was hanging around the Palace of the Gods, occupying a suite that nobody had known was there until he moved into it. Ryuu could find him right now and demand he put an end to this injustice. Well, that or politely point out that it might be a good idea. Gora was not the sort of person he felt entirely comfortable being demanding towards. Still, this was obviously a flaw in the universe, and it was Gora's job to fix that kind of thing. Let him start earning his keep in the Palace.

Feeling rather amused by his own daring, Ryuu left the mortal world behind and reappeared in the Palace of the Gods, just a few doors down from the room Gora and Yumoto had been sharing. He marched the last few feet and rapped on the door before he could lose his nerve. Almost instantly, the door swung open, and Ryuu stared up at the ruler of the universe. His hair was tousled, as if he'd been napping.

"Need something?" Gora asked. He did not sound altogether annoyed, just resigned to the fact that people _were_ going to pester him for things. Ryuu felt a little ashamed of himself.

"I was just going to ask..." he began.

"Wait," said Gora, attention suddenly going focused. "Before you ask me anything, let me ask you something: have you talked to Sulfur today?"

"Huh? Of course I have," Ryuu began. Then he stopped. "Wait, no..." He'd answered automatically: of course he'd talked to Io, because he always talked to Io. Only today he hadn't, because he'd spent the night on En's sofa and they'd spent all of breakfast talking seriously about nightmares and their meanings, and somehow it hadn't occurred to Ryuu that Io hadn't been there. That was wrong. Io was always there. He should have noticed. He _would_ have noticed if he hadn't been so wrapped up in his problems.

"I haven't seen him," he said softly.

"Then you'd better go talk to him," said Gora. "I'd hate to see him leave before you have a chance to say goodbye."

"Wait, what?" Ryuu yelped, but Gora was already closing the door.

Well, there were two ways to solve this little communication problem. Ryuu took off at a sprint. Within a few steps, he had vanished, reappearing on another floor on the other side of the palace. He was more surprised than he thought he'd be to find the room to Io's door open, and Io inside moving things around. He appeared to be packing. Ryuu stared. He had never seen Io's room in anything other than a state of controlled chaos. Now everything had been neatly organized, much of it packed into trunks which had in turn been stacked neatly against the wall. Io was in the middle of all this, directing streams of coins and gems into their proper places.

"What in the name of Chance's blessed bathwater is going on?" Ryuu blurted.

For a moment, Io looked sheepish. "Packing."

"To go where?" Ryuu persisted. "You aren't going anywhere. Where would you go?"

The sheepish expression left Io's face. His eyes were was cold as any of the metal in his trove, harder than diamonds.

"I'm leaving," he said. "I'm going to the underworld."

Ryuu stared. "But... you can't. You said you wouldn't. You said you didn't want to."

"Well, I changed my mind," said Io. "Anyway, I can't back out of it now. I've talked it over with Gora and he agrees I'm the right man for the job, so I'm moving in."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ryuu asked.

"It was none of your business," said Io stiffly. "This is my choice, not yours."

"That doesn't mean I don't have feelings about it!" Ryuu retorted.

"Well, I have feelings too," said Io tartly. "Maybe you should think about them, instead of standing there shouting at me. You have no right to tell me what to do with my life. Now, if you aren't going to help, then please move. I have a lot of packing left to do."

Ryuu stared at him, open-mouthed. Never, not in hundreds of years of existence, had Io ever spoken to Ryuu in that tone of voice.

"Well, fine!" Ryuu blurted. "Leave, then! Who needs you anyway!"

He turned on his heel and stomped of. Even long after he'd left Io's room behind, Ryuu still imagined he could feel those cold blank eyes following him.


	3. The Treasures of Sulfur

Akoya twirled a strand of hair around one finger thoughtfully.

"I'm beginning to see," he remarked, "why you were having so many difficulties."

Io smiled. "It certainly wasn't fun to live through." He toyed with his cooling tea, gazing into its depths as he relived the memories.

"Hey, you think it was bad for you?" Ryuu asked. "I was completely in the dark for the longest time. At least you knew why you were doing what you were doing."

"It seems to me," said Akoya, "that it's something of a miracle that you ever got married at all."

Ryuu laughed. "Well, we're gods. Miracles is what we do."

"So what did you do?" Akoya asked.

"Well," said Io slowly, "I mostly just did my job..."

* * *

Io looked around at his empty room. All his things had been packed away neatly and spirited off to wherever they were going next. He was alone in a dark, vacant space, which felt like the right place for him to be.

 _No, the right place for me is the underworld - the land of the dead. I had that right all along,_ he thought gloomily.

He still couldn't believe he'd shouted at Ryuu that way. It was completely unlike him to lose his temper like that. Only... well, Ryuu had looked so horrified to find him packing to leave, and Io had felt guilty, and he'd tried to compensate for it by shifting blame onto Ryuu. Childish, really.

 _Admit it - your feelings are hurt, and you wanted to hurt him back. You're not going to cut a very magnificent figure as ruler of the underworld if you keep that up._

Well, he would apologize later, after he'd settled in. Once he was firmly ensconced in his new home, Ryuu couldn't reasonably expect him to back out, so he'd have no choice but to learn to live with it.

 _But I really do need to get away from him a while, if this is how I'm going to be behaving around him._

His mind was still following this gloomy track when his attention was caught by the sound of someone coming down the hall. People did not tend to run down the hallways in the Palace of the Gods. They strolled in a leisurely fashion when they had time to kill, or disappeared and reappeared when they were in a hurry. This person, though, was running, apparently for the fun of it, and that could only mean one person. Io felt his stomach squirm. This was it.

Even as he was thinking that, Yumoto came skidding into view, all rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes, as if this was the most fun thing to happen to him in all his long existence.

"Hi!" he chirped. "Are you all ready to go?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," said Io.

Yumoto laughed. "Don't sound so gloomy! It'll be okay, I promise! Aren't you excited to see your new home?"

Io had to admit he was, at least a little. He was going to a whole new world, a place where so far, only Yumoto and Gora had ever been, and soon it would be _his_ world. His natural acquisitive nature asserted itself. If there was a world for the taking, he couldn't help but want to take it.

"I suppose I do," he admitted.

Yumoto beamed. "Okay, hold tight, then!"

He reached out and grabbed Io's hand. Io felt the sudden surge of power, and then he was falling away. He had the wrenching sense that the door to his room had just slammed and sealed itself, the whole suite folded itself back into the fabric of reality. The place that he had thought of as home since the day he had come into existence had disappeared as if it had never been.

An instant later, Io and Yumoto landed somewhere dark. Io looked around, trying to get his bearings. Gods didn't necessarily need light to see, but they appreciated it, and it took him a moment to adjust to being in such total blackness. There was no sun, no moon, no stars, not so much as a candle anywhere. The air around him was perfectly still and silent. Nothing anywhere was moving but himself and Yumoto.

"Is this it?" he asked. He expected his voice to echo, but instead it came out hushed, as if the immense silence around him was too great for any paltry noise he could make to disturb it.

"Kind of," said Yumoto. He began walking. "Come have a look and you'll see."

Not having any other options, Io followed. They were walking across something uneven and gently sloping. After a moment or two, Io realized that what he'd taken for the ground was actually a roof, and that he was standing on top of a wide building. A few more paces brought him close enough to the front that he could look down over the edge. Far below him, at the bottom of a long flight of stairs, he could see something that looked almost like a city - but only almost. It had a rough, unfinished quality to it, like a model carved by a lazy woodworker.

"It doesn't look like a paradise to me," he muttered.

"Oh, it's not done yet," said Yumoto. He reached the edge of the roof and jumped down from it, and Io followed him. They ambled down the stairs together.

"See," Yumoto continued, "this is just, you know, the base. It's not going to really come alive until you bond with it and wake it up."

"Wake it up?" Io repeated.

Yumoto nodded. "It's like the Palace of the Gods. It'll be able to move and adapt on its own once it's bonded to you. Here, I'll show you."

He led Io through the empty streets between silent houses, deeper and deeper into the city that wasn't quite real. At the heart of it all, they reached an open square. At the center, where other towns might have a well or a pavilion, there stood a rough stone obelisk. Even from several feet away, Io could feel power radiating from it.

"This is the keystone," Yumoto explained. His usually bright eyes were serious. "This is your last chance to back down, if you want to. Once you touch the stone, this world will be bound to you for as long as it exists. It will be part of you. Do you understand?"

Io's mouth was dry. Part of him, the sensible part, was saying that this was a ridiculous idea, that he needed to turn around right now and go back home. He couldn't bear to stay in this dark place forever, far away from his friends and the life he knew. What did he think he was doing, taking on such an important job for such a petty reason? He must have taken leave of his senses when he made this plan. But he was in love with someone who didn't want him, and after the way they had parted company, it was entirely possible that they couldn't even be friends anymore. Better to make a clean break and start over.

"All I do is touch it?" he asked.

Yumoto nodded encouragingly. "Just that. Are you ready?"

Io was not ready. He nodded anyway and stepped closer to the obelisk. Its power radiated against his skin like heat... no, not like that at all, he realized. It was like a magnet, drawing him closer. It _wanted_ someone to bond with it and bring it fully to life. It felt, Io thought, a little the way it did when his treasures clustered around him, begging for their master's attention. He smiled a little and extended his hand.

He had imagined that it would feel like being drawn into a trap. Yumoto had called it "binding", and that was how he'd envisioned it: like cords wrapping around him and tying him down. This feeling was the opposite of that. The moment his fingers touched the stone, the world expanded around him, unfurling in all directions. One second, he had been firmly ensconced in his own body; the next moment, his consciousness was stretching out and sinking into every particle of his new domain, making it part of him. He staggered, suddenly no longer sure where his feet were, and Yumoto hurried to prop him up.

"Wow! Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," said Io, blinking.

The world that had been so dark seconds before was now blazing with light. Ornate lamps now lined the streets, their light reflecting brilliantly off streets that were now paved with bars of gold. The houses that had been nothing before but rough-hewn boxes of stone had metamorphosed into rows of luxurious manor houses, their windows ablaze with welcoming light. The golden streets were lined with trees and flower boxes, strange plants that grew gemstones instead of petals or fruit, and they threw off a rainbow of glittering colors. Orbs of colored light, ranging in size from tiny dust motes to nearly two feet wide, drifted through the air, making the jeweled plants and gilt buildings sparkle. Brightest of all was the stone itself. What had once been a simple black obelisk had transformed into a multifaceted crystal thirty feet tall. It glowed with its own inner light, blazing like a bonfire in shades of orange, red, and yellow. Io turned in a slow circle, trying to take it all in.

"It's wonderful," he said softly.

Yumoto beamed, as if personally responsible for all of it. "Of course it is! It's your world, so it's as good as you know how to make it. The bonding went perfectly, so you're all set!"

Io nodded absently, continuing to stare at this brilliant new creation. This place, he thought, felt like home - even more like home than his cozy rooms ever had. Maybe he could be happy here.

"That's your house," Yumoto continued, pointing at the large building they'd been standing on when they first arrived. "Brother says you can have a day to unpack and explore, and tomorrow we'll let the people in."

Io considered the thought of spending the whole day here alone and grimaced.

"I'd really rather they came now," he said. "As soon as possible, anyway."

"Oh, I get it," said Yumoto, nodding. "Yeah, I wouldn't want to be all alone, either. Okay, I'll get Brother to open the gates."

He winked out in a flash of red fire. Io was left standing in a world that literally contained himself and no one else. For a moment, he felt more lonely than he ever had in his life. Then he shook the feeling off. Other people would be here soon - maybe a lot more people than he knew how to deal with - so he might as well get ready for them.

It was, in fact, about an hour later when his explorations were interrupted by a warm wind swirling through the still air, carrying with it a strong scent of fresh-cut wood. Then Gora was standing in front of him, axe slung casually over one shoulder.

"There you are," he said. "Come on. You wanted the gate open, right?"

Io wasn't exactly sure that was what he'd wanted, but he assumed Gora knew what he was doing. He nodded. Gora beckoned, and Io followed him across the city to its furthest border. A gate was cut into the rock, surprisingly small considering its importance. Like everything else in Io's new city, it was plated in gold and studded with jewels. Gora eyed it thoughtfully.

"You're going to need a gatekeeper," he mused. "I'll scout a few of the crossroads gods and see if any of them want a promotion. There's always something to be done," he concluded philosophically. "Unless there was someone specifically you wanted?"

 _Yes,_ Io thought, and squelched it.

"I'm sure anyone you'd choose is fine," he said.

Gora looked at him thoughtfully. Io fought the urge to squirm. He had never heard of Fate raising a hand in violence against anyone, but he _was_ a lot taller and stronger than Io, and he had an axe. That was not the sort of thing that made him easy to talk to.

"Something on your mind?" he asked.

"No," said Io, and then, "Yes."

Gora smiled slightly. "That covers everything, doesn't it?"

Io hesitated for a moment. If anyone in the universe knew the answers to all his questions, this man did. He wanted to say, "Why did it have to be this way? Why do I have to want things I can't have? Why couldn't you have done this differently?"

"Do you have everything planned out?" he blurted. "I mean, is there a purpose to all this, or are you just letting it happen?"

Gora smiled a little, as if he understood some of what Io wasn't saying.

"Maybe," he said. "Maybe I have a plan. Maybe I'm just letting it happen. Maybe all this is just a game I'm playing to keep Yumoto happy. Or maybe I've got this all planned so far ahead that some of the things I'm starting now are going to involve people who won't be born for centuries."

Io scowled. "That isn't very helpful."

"It isn't for you to know everything." His tone was kindly, but he clearly meant it. "But don't worry too much. I wouldn't have let you do this if I didn't think it was the best thing for you."

Io supposed he was going to have to be content with that, although he did not feel very content. He sighed and tried to pull himself together. If nothing else, he wanted to look at least a little bit regal for his new subjects. "All right, I'm ready now."

Gora nodded. He stepped forward and raised his axe, turning it around to strike the door with the blunt side of the blade. There was a booming sound, deeper and louder than such a small gate should have been capable of, and the doors began to slide slowly open. Light filtered through the crack, the soft rosy-gray sunrise light of the Land of the Blessed Dead. Clustered a respectful distance from the door was a mass of people, being held at bay by a handful of gatekeeper gods. At the sight of the doors opening, the assembled company emitted a murmur of awe and delight. Even from this distance, Io thought he recognized a few of them, here and there: a beloved king, a legendary warrior, a famous composer. Others were unfamiliar, people who had perhaps lived lives of unassuming virtue and who were finally getting their just reward. They were all watching him avidly. After a second or two, Io realized they were waiting for him to say something. He wondered if he was supposed to make a speech. He had never been much of a one for making speeches.

"The door is open," he said at last. He spoke softly, but his voice carried easily over the silent crowd. "You are my people. Come in, and be welcome."

That seemed to be enough. The crowd surged forward, and Io stepped aside to let them pass. They passed through the gateway and began to fan out, exploring their new home, exclaiming to friends over what they found. Io watched them for a while, feeling rather flattered at how impressed everyone was. After all, this was _his_ place, and it had taken its form from his own conception of what a paradise should be. It was nice to think other people were enjoying something that he was responsible for bringing into being. A few of them even stopped to bow to him or clasp his hands and thank him for giving them this wonderful new place to spend their afterlives. It was nice to feel popular. Watching the city come to life as it filled with people made him smile a little. Somewhere deeper into the city, someone with a flute began to play a tune, and someone else joined in with a fiddle. It wasn't long before an impromptu party had broken out.

"You know," said Io, turning to Gora, "I think you're right. I think I will like it here."

But Gora was already gone.

* * *

The operation was not going well. Ryuu frowned a little as he studied the girl behind the counter. She was busily cutting and folding strips of cloth to a lively gaggle of customers. She was a pretty woman, intelligent, spirited, quick-witted, and all-around desirable. She'd put off finding a mate for this long because she'd wanted to put all her energies into her business. Now that it was thriving, she'd called on Vesta to help her find someone to share it with. Ryuu had obliged her. He'd found a nice young man who was just to her taste and emotionally compatible with her - as perfect a match as he'd ever found for anyone -and nudged him into her shop. The two of them had clicked almost immediately, and by the time the young man had left with his purchase, the two of them had been chatting and laughing like old friends.

Then the idiot had promptly blown it by letting her see him chatting with another woman. The woman in question was a childhood friend of his, already happily married, but Ryuu's target didn't know that. Now the young man was back, trying to get up a conversation with her, and she was being stiff and professional and utterly unyielding. The poor young man had no idea what he'd done wrong, and Ryuu was ready to grind his teeth in frustration.

 _I hate it so much when they do this. Why can't people just talk to each other?_

He continued to frown as he considered his options for getting these two sorted out. He didn't even realize someone was watching _him_ until a voice behind him said, "Whatcha doin'?"

Ryuu jumped and whirled in place. "Don't _do_ that!"

En grinned, not looking particularly apologetic. "Pay more attention."

"I'm doing my job," said Ryuu. "Why aren't you doing yours?"

"It's the middle of the day," En said plausibly. "Hardly anybody is asleep."

"So why aren't _you_ asleep?" Ryuu asked.

"Hey, I can do things when I want to," said En, sounding mildly affronted. "Anyway, I have a bone to pick with you."

"What did I ever do to you?" Ryuu asked. "I've been doing my job, that's all."

"You haven't been sleeping," En accused.

Ryuu did not dispute this. He really hadn't been sleeping lately. It wasn't as though that was a problem, after all. Gods didn't actually need sleep, and this would hardly be the first time Ryuu had gone a few days without sleeping.

"I've been busy," Ryuu said.

"No busier than usual," said En. "You can't fool me. I'm an expert on procrastination. I know when someone is making themselves busy with one thing so they don't have to do something else."

"You've got it wrong," Ryuu insisted. "I've just had a lot of time on my hands since Io moved out, so I'm spending more time at my job."

"That doesn't explain why you're not sleeping," said En. "If you have free time, you ought to spend some of it sleeping."

"Hey, this is important, too!" said Ryuu. "I mean, look at these guys. They're never going to get their act together if I don't do something for them." He flapped a hand at his unfortunate lovelorn man, who was still trying and failing to get his would-be sweetheart's attention. En looked at them as if he hadn't realized they were there.

"What's their problem?" he asked.

"Just being stupid," Ryuu muttered. "They're perfect for each other, but they just can't seem to get in sync."

"Huh," said En. His expression said clearly that he was glad his job, at least, didn't involve so much work. "And this is what you'd rather do than hang out with Io?"

"No!" Ryuu blurted. "It's just... I can't."

"Why not?"

"I just can't, all right? Geez, when did you get to be so meddlesome?" Ryuu asked.

"It's self-defense," said En. "You keep getting lonely and wanting to talk to me now that Io is gone. What happened between you two, anyway?"

"I don't even know!" Ryuu said. "We were getting along fine! We hung out, I took him to see a play, we went dancing, we had a good time. Everything was great, but then the next day..."

He trailed off. He was staring very hard at the girl behind the counter. She was talking to a customer, who had already told her several times that she didn't need help and wasn't that young man there trying to get her attention? The proprietress was studiously ignoring him. Ryuu felt a sinking sensation creep over him.

"Oh," he said softly. Then, more loudly, "Wow. I am such an idiot. I can't believe what an idiot I am."

"Bet I could," said En helpfully.

Ryuu glared at him. "I'm serious! I don't deserve to call myself the god of love. They ought to kick me out of the Heavenly City and plant me at a crossroads for this."

"Uh-huh," said En. "As entertaining as this is, are you ever going to explain what you did, or are you just going to call yourself names for a while?"

"Don't you get it?" Ryuu asked. "Just look - look at that girl there. How do you think she feels about that guy?"

En looked confused at the sudden change of topic, but he glanced at the girl anyway and said, "Looks to me like she can't stand him. She won't even look at him."

"And that's why you're wrong and I'm an idiot," Ryuu pronounced. "She's crazy about him. She's avoiding him because she's so sure she can't have him. She thinks he's already involved with someone else, so she's avoiding him as much as she can to try to make it hurt less."

"Okay..." said En, still waiting for the punch line.

"Haven't you figured it out yet?" asked Ryuu, exasperated. "Look, why did Io suddenly take it into his head he needed to leave the City forever and go live in a whole other level of reality, if not to get away from something? That's classic avoidance behavior. If it had been anyone else in the world, that would have been the first thing I'd thought of - that he was avoiding somebody."

"So who's he avoiding?" En asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Ryuu asked. "He's avoiding _me_." Quietly, to himself, he added, "Because he likes me."

En shook his head. "See, this is why you're the god of love and I'm not. That makes no sense to me."

But it made perfect sense to Ryuu. He and Io had been friends practically forever. As far as Ryuu knew, he was the only really close friend Io had. He shouldn't have been surprised if Io started developing feelings for him. In retrospect, he thought he should have expected it. But Io had realized it first, and he'd run away from it.

 _Why? Shouldn't he have known he could tell me?_

Ryuu answered himself immediately: of course he couldn't tell. Ryuu was aware of his own reputation - he was the "love them and leave them" type, and Io would never stand for that. He wasn't made to let go of something once he had it. Io would want someone he could hold and treasure forever. He couldn't ask Ryuu to change his nature for him, so he'd taken the easiest way out that he saw. And he was right, wasn't he?

Wasn't he?

"Look, I gotta deal with this," said Ryuu to En. "Talk to you later, okay?"

En pointed at the young man and woman at the counter. "So what are you going to do about those guys?"

"I'll sort 'em out later! Look, just tell the guy to mention his old childhood friend is in town and see if they'll work it out themselves," said Ryuu impatiently.

"That's not my job!"

"I'll owe you a favor," said Ryuu. "What I've got to do is important!"

He vanished back to the City before En could raise any more objections. He'd probably complain about that later, and definitely would take Ryuu up on the offer of a favor, but that was a thing to worry about later. Right now, he had more important things to think about, possibly the most important thing he'd ever had to think about.

He reappeared in his room and went straight for the nearest mirror. Every god had their preferred method of scrying. Some of them gazed into fires, or peered into bowls of water or ink. Aurite favored reading the lights refracted through a crystal lens. Io had always done best with mirrors, and Ryuu had picked up the habit from him. He'd shared a lot of things with Io. Maybe he should have given that more thought before things got to this point.

Impatiently, he snatched up the mirror and blew gently on its surface. The glass rippled, went dark, then cleared. Ryuu found himself gazing into a golden city, a world that blazed with colored light. For a moment, Ryuu's eyes were dazzled by the flashes from what looked like millions of jewels paving streets, ornamenting buildings, even dangling from trees and vines. So this was Io's new world? Ryuu had to admit, it looked like the sort of place Io would consider a paradise.

Then the image zoomed in on a crowd of people milling about in the street. The center of their attention was a young man who they all seemed to be intent on talking to. As for the man himself, he accepted their adulation with grace and gentleness. It took a moment for Ryuu to realize the man was Io. Ryuu had never seen him look that way before. In place of his usual golden robes and spangled jewelry, he wore simple black robes that lent him an air of stately dignity. His once-golden hair had taken on a greenish undertone, and his tawny eyes held new depths of violet.

In short, he looked incredible, and it made Ryuu's heart clench a little to see him.

 _I guess I really am an idiot._ He'd always known Io was gorgeous, intelligent, and good company. He'd even toyed with the idea of setting him up with someone. He'd just never actually gotten around to doing it. Was that because he knew, deep down, that he'd never be able to stand seeing him with someone else?

Ryuu set the mirror aside and flopped back onto a sofa. If only Io had said something... but no, that wouldn't have worked. If Io had approached him he'd have probably done just what Io was doing now - retreat, make excuses, and tell himself that it was because he could never really love Io that way. He needed to be free to love anyone and everyone, not just one person. Yes, even if he would have liked to settle down...

 _Maybe he doesn't even want me anymore._ On a good day, Ryuu might have said that there was no one immune to his charms, but then, Io had been out of Ryuu's sphere of influence for days now. Maybe he was happier where he was. After all, here in the Heavenly City, there weren't but so many people who took him seriously. Now he had a whole kingdom to rule over, and his subjects obviously loved him. That wasn't even taking into account the fact that he now apparently had a whole new world full of sparkly treasures to hoard and admire. Maybe the best thing Ryuu could do was leave him alone to let him enjoy his good fortune in peace.

Ryuu turned all this over in his mind for a while. He was thinking a lot about the way he'd been feeling lately, and about what he wanted his future to be like, and also a lot about the nightmare he'd had, what felt like forever ago. In the end, he decided that perhaps he understood some things he hadn't before. Mind made up, he very deliberately stood and started for the door.

He had a few visits to make.

* * *

Io stood on one of his new home's many balconies and looked down on his glittering city. The people in the city square seemed to be having a party... or maybe it was the same party that had been going on since the gates of his new kingdom had opened. Io was finding it hard to keep track, and imagined the distinction probably didn't matter. People were enjoying themselves, anyway, and he supposed that meant he was doing a good job ruling. Maybe someday, he'd even feel like going down there and joining them.

He was jolted from his slightly melancholy thoughts by a rush of warm air, here in this place where there was never wind, and an accompanying familiar sweet scent. Io whirled, eyes going wide. Ryuu grinned and waved at him.

"I had a heck of a time figuring out how to get down here," he said. "You shoulda put up signs or something."

"What... how did... why?" Io stammered.

"What?" said Ryuu. "Did you really think you could get rid of me that easy? Because I tell you, buddy, I'm a lot more stubborn than you give me credit for. I'm not letting my best friend walk away from me like that."

In spite of himself, Io began to smile. "I missed you."

"I'll bet your did," said Ryuu. He strode forward and cuffed his friend gently on the shoulder. "Idiot," he added, smiling fondly.

"I suppose I should have known better," said Io. He wasn't sure what he was referring to - his going away, his expecting that Ryuu wouldn't follow him, his falling in love in the first place - but he felt it was an accurate statement regardless.

Ryuu wandered over to the railing and leaned out to look at the city. "So this is your new place, huh? Pretty swanky."

"I like it," said Io truthfully.

"Me too," said Ryuu. "Hey, you know what this reminds me of?"

"What?"

"That party we went to. You know, the one where we danced together." He pointed down at the city square. "See, that crystal thing is like the bonfire we danced around, and that platform there is the pavilion where the guy and his new bride were sitting, and all those colored light things are like the lanterns they had up..."

Io looked and realized Ryuu was right. Now that someone had mentioned it, he could see it clearly. Was that really a surprise? This was supposed to be his paradise, and that night had been the happiest night of his life. He had never wanted it to end, and here it was, recreated for his pleasure, except for one missing piece...

 _I was wrong to run away. Even here, all I really want is to be with him._

He took a breath. So this was it - it was time to take a gamble. He deliberately turned and met Ryuu's eyes.

"Would you let me have this dance, then?" he asked.

Ryuu's smile became, if anything, even more brilliant. He reached out both hands and pulled Io into his arms. Then the two of them were spinning around the balcony together, and Io had his eyes closed as he breathed in his friend's familiar scent and listened to his laughter, and he wished once again that the moment could go on forever.

Then the music stopped, and the two of them slowed and halted their steps. Io began to pull away, but then changed his mind. He wasn't losing his nerve, not now, not when he was this close. Instead, he leaned in closer and very deliberately pressed his lips to Ryuu's. He was prepared to be rebuffed, but Ryuu responded warmly, drawing him into an enthusiastic embrace. Io froze, trying to make sense of what was happening to him. Ryuu seemed to understand, and pulled away a little until their lips were just barely touching, gently running a hand through Io's hair as if to soothe him. Io was the one who leaned back into the touch, clinging to Ryuu as if he could make him stay by strength alone. Ryuu made no move to pull away. He curled his arms around Io and kissed him slowly, tenderly, drawing it out, and gradually Io relaxed. He let himself lean against Ryuu with his eyes closed and let himself think of nothing else.

Then Ryuu pulled slowly away, and Io backed up, already regretting what he'd done so impulsively.

"I shouldn't have done that," he said.

Ryuu regarded him thoughtfully. "Why not?"

"Can you even ask that?" Io demanded.

"Well, you don't have to answer," said Ryuu. "I think I can figure it out. Believe it or not, I do know my job."

Io felt himself blushing. He turned away. "I should have known I couldn't fool you. But Ryuu..."

"No, listen, hear me out," Ryuu cut in. "Things are changing right now. I mean, you've got this whole death-god thing going on. It seems to suit you pretty well, and I'm glad. I think you'll do all right here. But I've been doing some hard thinking, and I think I need to change my ways too."

"Ryuu..." Io said, and stopped. He couldn't possibly mean what it sounded like he meant.

"See, the thing is," said Ryuu, "I haven't been doing my job. I thought I was, but I wasn't."

"What do you mean?" Io asked. "You work all the time. I've seen you."

"Kind of," said Ryuu, "but I haven't been doing my whole job, and it took me the longest time to realize that. I'm supposed to be the god of _love_ , after all, not just the god of random hookups. Isn't that sad? I'm the god of love and I've never actually had a real romance of my own. That's pretty pathetic, and I feel like I want to change that. So I've been thinking, is there anyone in the world I would want to be with that way - someone I could really be happy with forever? And I realized there's really only one person I never get tired of." His eyes looked directly into Io's. "That's you."

Io felt his mouth go dry. It couldn't be real - it had to be some sort of crazy dream. There was simply no way that Ryuu would spontaneously give up his wandering ways to declare everlasting devotion to anyone, much less to Io. And yet, here he was, looking eager and a little nervous and not sorry at all. Io shook his head.

"If it turns out this is some sort of prank of En's, I'm going to drag him into the Abyss," he said.

Ryuu laughed. "I guess it is a little hard to believe, isn't it? But seriously, I've had fun with my life and I don't have any regrets, but it's time for a change. I've been feeling that way for a while now, even before you packed up and left. That just helped me make up my mind. And you can't tell me you don't feel the same way, either - not after you kissed me like that."

"What if you change your mind?" Io blurted. "What if after a night, or a week, or a year, you realize you want to go back to the way things were? What then?"

"I guess we'll cross that bridge if we come to it," said Ryuu, running a hand through his hair. "But I don't think we will. I haven't gotten tired of you yet, have I?"

Io looked down. "It might be different if we were... you know."

"I'm willing to bet it won't be," said Ryuu. Then, with one of his sudden mischievous grins, he added, "Hey, you really are distracted if you haven't noticed what's in my pocket yet."

Io had definitely been distracted. To be fair, he'd had other things going on. Now he focused his attentions on the aforementioned pocket and looked up again, puzzled.

"It's gold," he said.

Ryuu beamed and brought the object out into the light. It was gold, all right, a delicate band of intertwined rose gold and yellow gold.

"I talked to the smith god before I came over here," he said. "You know, spent a favor and got him to make me this. I've got one for me too. Just in case you thought I wasn't serious."

"You... got us rings?" Io said wonderingly. "As in, _wedding_ rings?"

Ryuu nodded, as if this were perfectly logical and reasonable. "I figured you'd feel better if you had something you could hold in your hand. We don't have to do it right away, though. Not unless you want to, I mean. I'd rather wait a little while."

"So you have time to change your mind?" Io asked, raising an eyebrow.

"So I have a chance to court you properly," said Ryuu. "You know, bring you flowers and jewelry and take you to dinner and stuff. I've been the god of romance since the dawn of civilization and I've never been able to do any of that before. But if it will make you feel better to go ahead and get hitched right away, we can do that and I'll bring you flowers some other time."

He spoke with such utter certainty that Io could only stare at him. Then, slowly, he began to smile.

"You _will_ court me," he said, jabbing a finger at Ryuu's chest. "And bring me flowers and jewelry and... and chocolates and things! And you had better not change your mind, either."

"Wouldn't dream of it," said Ryuu. He looked absurdly happy.

He tossed the ring to Io, who caught it reflexively. It felt warm in his hand. Io slipped it on and felt it settle into place as if it belonged there.

"Consider that an engagement ring," said Ryuu.

"I will," said Io. "Wait, did you just propose to me? When did I say yes?"

Ryuu grinned. "Are you saying no?"

Io shook his head, laughing. "You're impossible."

"There's still time to change your mind about this," said Ryuu.

"Don't. Even. Think about it," said Io.

Ryuu grinned. "You just want me to bring you presents."

"You'd better believe it," said Io loftily. Then he softened. "I really do love you. You know that, right?"

"I know," said Ryuu gently. He took Io's hands. "I love you too, and I'm going to do whatever it takes to make you believe it."

"I don't expect you to change your nature," Io ventured.

Ryuu shook his head. "I know I can't change my nature, but I think I can change how I deal with it. Just be patient with me, okay?"

Io found himself smiling. "Well, I've put up with you this long."

Ryuu laughed and pulled him into an embrace. For a long time, the two of them stood together, arms wrapped around each other. Io looked into Ryuu's smiling face, with the dancing lights of the city playing over his skin and making his eyes sparkle, and began to cautiously believe that this was really happening. It was going to take time to get used to, and it was going to take work, but he was starting to realize that there was a chance, and that was more than he'd had before.

Far below them, the city went on just as it had before: the same people, the same glittering scenery, the same music and dancing. The only difference was that just now, for Io, it finally felt like paradise.

* * *

"Of course," said Ryuu, "he really did make me prove myself. Put me through the wringer."

"I did not," Io huffed.

Akoya regarded the two of them mock-quarreling with fascination. "But you did get married in the end, yes? That's the important thing."

Ryuu laughed. "Oh, sure. He held out for... what was it, Io? Two weeks?"

"Ten days," said Io with a smile. Ryuu was hard to resist when he was working at being persuasive, and Ryuu had been trying _very_ hard to persuade him.

"Right, ten days," said Ryuu. "Longest ten days of my life, but it was totally worth it."

"It's so strange," said Akoya, twirling his hair thoughtfully. "I used to be so jealous of how much you two trusted each other. It's hard to imagine things being any different."

"To be fair," said Io, "back then, we never could have imagined the way things have turned out now."

"Fate knew, though," said Ryuu thoughtfully.

"I suppose so," Io agreed, "but would we have believed him if he told us?"

All three of them thought about it for a moment, then said in unison, "No." Ryuu laughed.

"Listen to us," he said. "Not even married a week and we already sound like we've been together for ages."

Io smiled. "Well, some of us have been."

Akoya turned one of the packages they'd been opening over and over in his hands, staring down at the brightly colored wrapping.

"You must have been very happy together," he said. "I hope... I mean, it's going to be different, now that I'm here, so..."

Ryuu put an arm around him and ruffled his hair affectionately. "What are you worrying about? Things are going to be even more fun now that you're here, I can guarantee it!"

Io said nothing, but he looked at the two of them and smiled. He still couldn't imagine what he'd done to win the two of them, but it looked like they were with him for good.

 _I really am the luckiest man in the world..._

Ryuu reached into the heap of gifts and tossed a package Io's way.

"So are we opening presents or what?" he asked. "I want to see what's in some of these."

"You should have been helping us open them, then," Akoya pointed out.

"Hey, I wanted to save a few for you and Io," said Ryuu, blinking innocently. "He's the one who likes hoarding stuff."

"Collecting," Io corrected automatically.

"Whatever you call it, let's get it done," said Ryuu. "I don't know about you two, but I planned to do other things on my honeymoon besides open boxes."

"We could open the rest later," Io suggested.

Ryuu and Akoya both looked mildly surprised at this suggestion. Ryuu pressed a hand to his heart and mimed swooning.

"What's that? Io isn't interested in people giving him things?" he exclaimed. "Who is this guy and what has he done with my husband?"

"Oh, you," said Io. "I'm not that bad, am I?"

Akoya smiled. "It's part of your charm."

Io shook his head, amused, and looked down at the new ring he wore. Ryuu had gotten the originals re-forged for their new wedding. The twin bands of yellow and rose gold were now intertwined with a third band of white gold and studded with tiny pearls.

"Anyway, this is a special occasion," he said. "The presents will sill be here when we're done."

 _And anyway,_ he thought, looking at his two loves - one he'd had nearly all his life, one that was just beginning - _I already have the greatest treasures of all._


End file.
